FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In July 2025, GAO identified 11 priority recommendations for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Since then, NTIA has implemented one of those recommendations, bringing the total to 10 as of June 2026. GAO is highlighting the following three areas that warrant timely and focused attention: Managing radio-frequency spectrum, Managing IT and cybersecurity risks to spectrum infrastructure, and Managing federal broadband programs. Addressing GAO's recommendations in these areas would enhance NTIA's efforts to collaborate with other federal agencies; better ensure the success of its IT modernization efforts; and improve the financial sustainabili.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reported approximately $1 billion in cumulative estimated improper payments—including overpayments, underpayments, and unknown payments—across the Beneficiary Travel (BT) Program from fiscal years 2018 through 2024. During that period, 10 cases of fraud related to the BT Program were adjudicated. The cases involved at least 892 fraudulent claims and totaled at least $219,000. Most of the cases involved beneficiaries that fraudulently reported addresses. VA has implemented data systems partly to mitigate fraud and improper payment risks in the BT Program. Examples include automatically verifying certain claim information before claims ca.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) met increasingly frequent and large drawdown directives. Since 1985, the Department of Energy (DOE) has released more than 500 million barrels of crude oil from the SPR. More than half of the amount released through 2025 was for emergencies—such as wars—and nearly 70 percent of all releases occurred from 2014 through 2025. A 180-million-barrel emergency release in 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine tested the SPR’s capabilities, as it was both the largest drawdown ever and occurred in the context of an extended backlog of deferred maintenance. In March 2026, DOE began a 172-million-barrel emergency release planned in response to the war in.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found To strengthen the United States’ and its foreign partners’ security, the U.S. government sells or provides defense articles and services to more than 100 foreign governments and international organizations that request them. The Department of Defense (DOD), with other agencies, uses technology release and foreign disclosure policies and procedures—the TRFD processes—to determine whether to share sensitive military technology and intelligence with foreign partners. Generally, the TRFD processes start when a foreign partner submits a request to DOD. Designated officials manage the request to obtain approval from the relevant military departments and interagency stakeholders. Ex.
CABI U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
This Scroll-Driven Narrative tells the story of how pharmaceutical companies and the federal government work together to turn ideas into innovative medical treatments. It is a companion to GAO’s report Biomedical Research: NIH Should Publicly Report More Information about the Licensing of Its Intellectual Property, GAO-21-52. This product highlights key themes from GAO’s prior work—particularly the lack of publicly available information on licensing of intellectual property developed through National Institutes of Health (NIH) research. It also highlights recommendations from GAO’s prior work and NIH efforts to implement them. For more information, contact Candice N. Wright at [email protected].
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Four selected agencies—the Departments of State, Transportation, Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Small Business Administration (SBA)—varied in their efforts to implement and ensure contractor compliance with three key cloud security practices. Specifically, one agency had fully implemented all three practices for two of its systems and one agency had fully implemented the practices for one of its systems. The agencies partially implemented the practices for the remaining five systems (see figure). Agencies’ Implementation of Key Cloud Security Practices aDue to sensitivity concerns, GAO is not disclosing the names of the selected systems in this report. Systems are identified..
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
The Big Picture The Department of Defense (DOD) military health system provides medical care to 9.4 million beneficiaries, including service members and their families around the globe. This care is delivered through over 700 medical facilities with more than 100,000 military, civilian, and contractor employees, and a vast network of private sector health care providers. DOD estimates that it will spend over $72.5 billion for the military health system in fiscal year 2027. For more than a decade, DOD has taken actions to reform its health system in response to legislative requirements and to more effectively manage the system. For example, in response to December 2016 legislation, the Defen.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Empirical studies assessing the effects of domestic airline mergers generally found that, in the short run, consumers faced higher fares and lower service quality (e.g., on-time performance) on routes where the merger resulted in fewer competitors. For example, based on three studies that used particularly strong methodologies, fares increased between 1 and 8 percent following the merger. Other studies found mergers sometimes led to some improvements in airlines’ efficiencies (e.g., cost reductions), but challenges, such as combining workforces, sometimes reduced or eliminated anticipated gains. GAO’s analyses of airline competition metrics provide a longer-term perspective t.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In fiscal year 2025 FraudNet processed over 9,350 allegations and referred about 3,100 of these to various organizations for further inquiry. FraudNet also conducted over 900 queries of commercial and law enforcement databases to assist GAO audits and investigations. FraudNet Processed over 9,350 Allegations In FY 2025, FraudNet processed over 9,350 allegations received from the public, as well as government employees and contractors. Of these, FraudNet referred about 3,100 to other entities for potential action, including investigation. FraudNet referred allegations to over 60 entities, including the Offices of the Inspector General (OIG) at the Departments of Agriculture, D.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (2017 NDAA) requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop an annual report containing 43 specific metrics to measure the effectiveness of border security. DHS reported on 40 of these metrics in its 2023 Border Security Metrics Report, which it submitted in January 2025. These 40 metrics included two that DHS first included in its 2022 report and one that it first included in its 2023 report. Of the 40 metrics, 21 generally corresponded with their 2017 NDAA definitions, while 19—including the three additional metrics—differed in scope or calculation. GAO previously reviewed DHS's Border Security Metric.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found In May 2025, GAO identified 12 priority recommendations for the Department of Labor (DOL). Since then, DOL has implemented two of those recommendations, bringing the total to 10 priority recommendations in June 2026. GAO is highlighting the following three areas that warrant timely and focused attention: Protecting sensitive information, Enhancing unemployment insurance (UI), and Strengthening worker safety and health protections. Addressing GAO's recommendations in these areas would better ensure effective implementation of critical protections for sensitive personal information; help the agency stabilize the UI system for future economic downturns and monitor whether states.
FEDE U.S. Government Accountability Office · Audits audits
What GAO Found Rural communities that are not currently served by drinking water or wastewater utilities (unserved communities) often face challenges addressing their drinking water or wastewater infrastructure needs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have limited data about these unserved communities but can obtain some information through their agencies’ programs and datasets. The rural unserved communities known to USDA and EPA are often in unincorporated areas and frequently have financial and other constraints that limit their ability to address their water infrastructure needs, according to agency officials. Homes Without Wastewat.
